


When A Dove Begins To Fly With Crows

by Boo_82



Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2017-10-07
Packaged: 2019-01-10 09:50:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,920
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12296652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Boo_82/pseuds/Boo_82
Summary: After the death of Grams, Bonnie is inconsolable, until one day a mysterious crow lands on her windowsill and draws her attention... S01.





	1. Three Evenings

**When A Dove Begins To Fly With Crows**

* * *

_Prologue_

* * *

Bonnie Bennett felt numb. Which each day passing, she dragged herself to school and idly sat through her classes, though the teachers' words never reached her. She responded automatically to Elena and Caroline's attempts to draw her attention, keeping them at distance with a fake, reassuring smile that didn't falter until she headed for her Prius and performed the acts to get the vehicle up and running.

Upon coming home to an empty house, she took an aspirin to calm the throbbing headache that was the only disturbance to the absolute muteness surrounding her.

Bonnie Bennett felt empty. Completely, utterly empty, but for a raw, painful feeling of despair that clenched her heart every time the reason for her grievance flickered through the wad of cotton wool in her mind.

Sometimes, whether it would be when Caroline said something infinitely tactless or when she watched a show on television, she momentarily got distracted from the inescapable exasperation that would return twice as fiercely the following moment, a cruel punishment for her negligence. These were moments to avoid.

She had asked her father not to clean up her grandmother's house as of yet and knowing how much his daughter had loved her Grams he had respected her wishes. She had yet to visit the house, though.

At night, when she'd done her homework, thanks to the copied notes Elena silently slipped her, she sat down at the window seat and watched the dark sky above the looming forest. When weariness took over and silent tears flowed down her cheeks, she found that the gloomy call of crows from the woods framed her dejected mood.

She cried herself to sleep every night.

* * *

_First Evening_

* * *

When Bonnie came home it had been a Tuesday like all of the others, except for the headache which now throbbed inside her head with even more ferocity. Bonnie sighed shakily as she unseeingly made her way toward the kitchen.

Today, Caroline had realized that she had lost not only one but two of her most talented cheerleaders in less than a year's time. She hadn't taken it very well. Reaching inside the drawer, Bonnie decided on taking two aspirins today.

Then she dragged herself up the stairs to do her homework.

Darkness had fallen over Mystic Falls when Bonnie closed her French textbook. She made herself a cup of tea and sat down at the window seat, one leg tugged underneath the other, while she breathed in the sultry air coming in through the opened window. On their own accord, tears started to stream down her cheeks as she looked up at the starry night.

"I'm so tired, Grams," Bonnie suddenly whispered, her voice choked from sadness. Never before she'd spoken when she was watching the night sky, but the events of today had shaken the stoic numbness blanketing her. "I quit cheerleading today. I just… can't work up the enthusiasm anymore. Caroline of course didn't understand it. Knowing her, I won't hear the end of it tomorrow, but I… I don't know how much I can handle of that stuff. I… I miss you so much, Grams."

Her hand clenched the cup of tea she was holding, her knuckles turning white. "How do I go on, Grams? I'm trying, but I feel like I'm drowning in a pool of blackness. It's killing me, Grams!"

She bowed her head and a sob suddenly ripped through her chest. "I need you. Why did you leave me? How will I ever go on learning what you wanted me to learn, when you're not here anymore? I don't know if I have the strength to do it on my own, the will to do it on my own. This all is still so very new to me…"

Bonnie took in a shaky breath and squeezed shut her eyes to get a grip on herself, then looked up at the dark velvet sky. Through her tears she saw the stars glisten like small, reassuring dots of light in the dark veil covering the world. The sight somewhat calmed her and her fists, which had been curled under the hollows of her knees relaxed.

"How will I know you're all right?" She whispered quietly. "That you've found your way into the afterlife? I wish you would give me a sign, anything…"

A sigh unvoluntarily escaped her as her fingers massaged her temples when an air current unexpectedly brushed her face. In a reflex, Bonnie jerked up her head and looked around. "Grams?" She asked breathlessly but her gaze only met with the stars glistening in the sky and the forest rustling at the background like before. All had gone quiet again.

Disappointedly, Bonnie shook her head when her gaze came to rest upon the black bird that suddenly was perched on her windowsill. It was a crow.

Bonnie felt herself stiffen and blinked as the crow cocked its little head and looked at her through beady black eyes. Her headache, dulled by the aspirin, was forgotten as she stared back. An ominous feeling told her that she'd seen this crow before, whenever she would wake up from the frightening nightmares that resulted into sleep walking. She furrowed her eyebrows.

Her first instinct was to shoo him away and she lifted her arm to do so, when an old memory drifted to the surface. A memory of her Grams telling her about crows, as a symbol of the spiritual aspect of death, or the transition of the spirit into the afterlife.

Bonnie's breath caught and her hand fell to her side again as she leaned forward to the bird, her eyes narrowing. "Grams?" She repeated, this time hesitant, though a bit hopeful.

"Caw!" The crow called indignantly and ruffled its feathers before it cocked its head once more.

Bonnie shook her head in disappointment. "I didn't think so," she mumbled as the small spark of hope left her and the familiar feeling of loss enveloped her once more. Still, the crow had managed to pull her out of her misery for a moment and for that she was grateful.

"Wait here," she said idly to the small animal and disappeared inside her room, to return with a crumbled biscuit, out of a pack she held in a drawer of her desk. She leaned out the window and noticed that the crow had stayed at exactly the same place she'd left him. A small smile formed on her lips as she carefully lay down the crumbs on the windowsill and retreated.

The crow took a few hesitant steps forward and clicked its beak. Its gaze trailed to the crumbs spread before him.

"For you," Bonnie invited him on a soft, non-threatening tone. She nodded encouragingly when the crow's beady eyes looked up at her again, searching her delicate features. The moment she retreated and closed the window the crow approached the crumbs with a few large hops and eagerly began to pick them up.

When Bonnie returned to close the over curtains to go to sleep, the crow was gone.

* * *

_Second Evening_

* * *

The next day Bonnie awoke a bit more rested than usual and got ready for another day at school. Thankfully and probably due to interference from Elena, Caroline didn't bother her any further about her quitting cheerleading in the middle of the school year. So her headache was not as intense as she'd expected it to, when she parked her Prius next to her house after school and walked into the kitchen.

She spent a few hours studying for a geography test that didn't hold her interest, when her cell phone rang. It was Elena.

"Hey girl. I didn't catch you after school. How are you now?" Elena's somewhat husky voice was filled with sympathy and Bonnie closed her eyes as the gnawing despair stung her heart once more.

"I…" she started hesitantly. "I'm all right I suppose. Last night I actually had a good night's sleep…"

"You did look better today," Elena chimed in, obviously clinging to the hint of positivity enclosed in Bonnie's words. Bonnie smiled wryly. Was it only a few months ago that she had been saying the same thing when Elena's parents had died?

"Thanks," she sighed.

"Should I come over?" Elena asked from the other side of the line. "Or you could come to my place and stay to sleep."

Bonnie cast a look over her shoulder and noticed that dusk was setting in. She hesitated. Though she wasn't really in the mood, perhaps a girl's night over would distract her from things. And with Jenna and Jeremy around, Elena's house was a lot livelier than her own quiet home. A sigh escaped her and she thought about accepting when the call of a crow startled her. Bonnie turned and cast a look out the window. The golden rays of the setting sun had made place for a murky half light, pulling her toward the windowsill. She made a decision.

"Actually, Elena, could we do that some other time? I'm really tired and I would be glad if I had another one of that good night's sleep."

"Of course," Elena responded understandingly. "But don't run away on me tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok," Bonnie smiled apologetically, then something came to mind. "Oh Elena, thanks for getting Caroline off my back today on my quitting cheerleading. I was so sure she was going to give me hard time for that."

For a moment it was quiet at the other side of the line.

"Well, I'm glad that she didn't," Elena finally said, "though perhaps she has activated her only brain cell concerned with tact and sympathy, because I didn't talk to her."

"Oh…" Bonnie fell silent. She had been positive that Elena had spoken to Caroline, since their friend hadn't showed any sympathy when Elena's parents died, let alone Bonnie's grandmother, whom the blonde had always found a bit strange. "Well, I got to be going. I want to have dinner ready when my dad comes home."

"Sure," Elena agreed. "Goodnight. See you tomorrow."

Bonnie lay down her cell phone and rose from her bed, heading straight for the window seat. Slowly she sat down and looked up at the sky. It was cloudy tonight and the stars were veiled, though the surroundings seemed lighter somehow, because of the reflection of the lights on earth.

"Caw!"

The croaking sound of a crow's call nearby startled her and Bonnie shot up straight. Her wide eyes immediately fixed on the small figure of a familiar black bird that sat on the windowsill not too far away from her. He clicked with his beak and ruffled his feathers when he saw that he'd caught her attention. His beady eyes gleamed in the warm light coming from her room.

"You again?" She leaned outside the window and raised her eyebrows. "Do you want some more biscuits?"

The crow hopped on its place and cocked its little head.

She shook her head and sighed. "That's what comes from acting on impulse. How will I get you to go away now?"

The crow stepped a bit closer, as if saying 'you won't.' A small smile appeared on Bonnie's features.

"Wait here," she said to the bird and retreated inside to return with a crumbled biscuit.

Carefully, she lay the crumbs on the windowsill and sat down, waiting for the crow to pick them up. Somehow, she felt that she wouldn't have to retreat again for him to eat the crumbs. He wasn't a shy crow.

To her satisfaction, the crow indeed took a few steps closer and started to pick up the crumbs, after he had watched her with curious, beady eyes.

As the silence was broken only by the soft sound of a crow's beak ticking against the wooden windowsill, Bonnie averted her gaze toward the night sky and her thoughts inevitably drifted toward her grandmother.

"You know, birdie, when I first saw you, I thought you were my Grams."

The crow momentarily looked up and croaked softly at her statement. It sounded a bit mockingly. Bonnie smiled wryly and somehow felt the urge to explain herself.

"Yeah, pathetic, I know. But, it's just… she passed away not too long ago and I… I just miss her so much." The last words she choked out and her blurry gaze registered how the crow finished its last crumb and, instead of flying away, sat right beside her now, watching her with a strangely intense gaze. A gaze which seemed to encourage her to continue talking, to breach the wall of numbness shielding her from the world outside her pain.

She bowed her head, looking at the crow's black feathers which gleamed in the golden light of the standard lamp behind her.

"My Grams was a fabulous woman, beautiful, strong, intelligent. She was a college professor, you know? After my parents got divorced and with my father being away all the time she practically raised me. She taught me… to value the good in this world, to study hard and to always look outside the box. I guess, when I look back, she was already preparing me… My Grams was proud, powerful and… a witch."

The crow cocked its little head and Bonnie nodded smilingly, imagining the animal reacting to her words. "Yes, she was a witch. But don't you worry. She wasn't the kind that would turn you into a frog, or something like that…" The crow ruffled its feathers and with a small smile Bonnie lay her head on her knees as she watched him blink.

"I never got to know what exactly she could do, though," she mumbled regretfully. "I can still remember the day she told me that all of the strange things happening to me were because I was a witch. You know, I didn't believe her? I didn't want to believe her. Witches were creatures from fairytales. Not me. But, before I knew it I lit candles without using fire and had down floating through the air…"

The crow again made a soft, croaking sound and hopped closer, its beady eyes looking up at her with interest. Bonnie sighed.

"She had just started to teach me. And now she's gone and I don't know what to do now. Should I go on and try to teach myself? Or perhaps it's for the best when I just let it be. No more witchcraft, no more vampires trying to take advantage of what I am," she spoke those words with disgust and for a moment she imagined that the crow flinched under her hard stare, "no more deaths."

A lonely tear slid down her cheek as she locked eyes with the crow. A silent moment passed in which they only looked at each other and somehow Bonnie felt as if the beady black eyes were pleading with her not to give in to her doubts. She leaned back her head against the window frame, feeling rage against the person who had caused all of her misery flaring up.

"Tell me, birdie," she asked in a toneless way that betrayed the anger lying underneath. "Why did he have to be so persistent, so… so blind? He could have known that Katherine was bad news. Why did he have to kill all those people and misuse Caroline and… and kill my Grams?"

With a furious gaze in her brown eyes she looked down on the black bird that sat motionlessly by her feet.

"Yes, he killed her!" she hissed, as hot tears now flowed freely down her cheeks. "My Grams died from the strain the spell has put on her body, a strain which would have killed me too, if she hadn't been with me that night!"

She leaned her head on her knees and sobbed uncontrollably. "I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!" Her muffled cries sounded painfully as she clenched her fists and slammed them against the windowsill.

As suddenly as it had begun, Bonnie was pulled from her rage when she heard a "Caw!" and watched with wide eyes as the crow flapped its wings in fright and flew away.

Immediately, a feeling of guilt washed over her as the bird disappeared in the dark night sky. She had scared off the crow by her fierce emotion and her sudden act of violence. Poor bird.

A stinging pain then drew her attention and she looked down on her left hand which was still balled into a fist. Blood dripped on the windowsill where the splinter had penetrated deeply into her caramel skin. Cursing herself Bonnie retreated inside to search for a bandage.

From the woods a crow called.

* * *

_Third Evening_

* * *

"I need your help, little brother."

Stefan looked up to see Damon standing before him, his stony face betraying nothing. He was a little shocked. These words were one of the very few Damon had said since the debacle in Fell's Church. He had retreated into a brooding silence, that wasn't like him. Stefan's heart had wrenched at seeing his brother hurting so badly, but Damon didn't allow anybody to come near him to support him. Not even Elena, whom he avoided.

So, Stefan kept his features composed when he asked carefully, "What is it?"

For a moment, Damon just looked at him, then sat down. "I need you to ask Elena to go inside Sheila Bennett's old house and search for the witch's grimoire."

After an initial moment of surprise, Stefan couldn't help the look of suspicion passing over his face. Emily's grimoire was safe with Bonnie and he couldn't fathom why his brother would take an interest in the, probably less elaborated, grimoire of Bonnie's late grandmother. Or how Damon would know it wasn't in Bonnie's possession already.

Damon must have sensed his hesitation, because he bowed forward slightly and said with emphasis on each word, "And then you'll have Elena give it to Bonnie."

The look of confusion was now apparent on Stefan's face, causing Damon to sigh and roll his eyes in his characteristic way.

"Look. The witch might have suspected the…" he looked away uncomfortably now, "unfortunate ending of the spell, but I don't think she would have destroyed her grimoire, like she was supposed to when she felt her time had come. Bonnie is very new to the art and she needs every help, every encouragement she can get. Including her own grandmother's cookbook." Only slight sarcasm laced his abnormally serious voice.

Stefan had silently listened to his brother's words, but now bowed his head and frowned as he stared Damon in the eye. "And what's in it for you, Damon? What do you want with Bonnie now? I'm feeling very, very sorry about how things turned out for you, but I can't let you mess with her even further. She's hurting, her grandmother died because of us."

Stefan really meant this. He felt awfully guilty knowing that him running into the tomb had caused Sheila and Bonnie to lift the seal.

"I know she's hurting!" Damon snapped at him and Stefan backed down a little bit, surprised at his brother's unexpected ferocity.

But Damon quickly regained his composure and stood up abruptly, fixing his little brother with a cold, blue stare. "I take it you don't want to help me then?"

He turned around and walked away, when he was stopped by Stefan appearing before him with vampire speed.

"You're wrong there, Damon," he said. "I do want to help."

* * *

The following day Bonnie faithfully waited for Elena to arrive and they walked to the parking lot together. From the corner of her eye she saw Caroline eying her while she walked away with Matt, but the blonde averted her gaze when she crossed Bonnie's look. Shrugging it off, Bonnie returned her attention to Elena who looked positively uncomfortable this afternoon. Which was strange, since Bonnie had heard nothing unusual in her voice on the phone the other night. But, when Bonnie wanted to ask her about it, Elena ducked into her SUV and pulled something from the glove compartment. It was an ordinary notebook.

"So, ehm, Stefan asked me to give you this." Elena pushed the book into her hands.

"What is it?" Bonnie didn't take a look at it as she questioned Elena, but her best friend didn't seem in the mood to talk anymore and gently shoved her toward her own Prius. "Just take it Bonnie and promise me you'll take a look at it when you're home. Please?"

"Sure," Bonnie raised an eyebrow and put the book into her backpack as a relieved smile appeared on Elena's serious features. "Great. Thank you. See you tomorrow!"

And as her friend quickly jumped into her SUV, Bonnie shook her head. There was something strange going on here.

At home she headed toward the kitchen automatically, only to discover that the heavy feeling in her head didn't justify any taking of pain medication. Perhaps crying out her frustration last night had helped, she mused in pleasant surprise. She didn't linger on it though, as she made herself some tea and walked up the stairs to her room, where her homework waited.

She spent an hour and a half studying, actually having become absorbed by the difficult economy task as darkness fell over Mystic Falls. The moment she wrote down the last result, the memory of the frightened crow drifted to the surface and Bonnie stood up and opened the drawer. She took a biscuit and with a guilty expression on her face crumbled it on the windowsill outside. Then she sat down on the window seat to wait for the black bird to arrive. She noticed that she actually hoped he'd come back, for the animal made her open up about her sorrow in a way nobody had been able to before.

As she waited, her eyelids grew heavy and she felt herself drifting to sleep, when suddenly a soft "Caw!" roughly pulled her from her slumber. Her eyes shot open as her head snapped up in shock. She looked around in bewilderment, then leaned outside to see the crow perched amidst the biscuit crumbs in front of her. He looked at her curiously.

Bonnie's face lit up and her beating heart jumped up before calming down. "Thank God, you came back," she exclaimed in relief and the crow cocked its head as if saying 'of course.'

A smile relaxed Bonnie's tense features. "I'm sorry I startled you last night. I won't do it again, I promise."

The crow merely ruffled its feathers and seemed to look at her hand, where a small band aid covered the now closed cut from the splinter. Bonnie followed its gaze. "Yes," she agreed regretfully. "That's what comes from letting yourself go like that."

She sighed and shook her head. "And all because of Damon Salvatore."

Her gaze averted to the heavily clouded sky. It was going to rain pretty soon. The crow made a small sound and started to pick up the crumbs.

"An awful waste of time," Bonnie spoke thoughtfully as she rested her chin on her hands, her elbows propped on the windowsill as she stared upwards. "It's strange, though. I absolutely loathe him, I really do. He's so different from his brother Stefan. All he does is for his own good and he misuses and manipulates people like puppets to serve his plans, but every time I think of him, I only see the despair on his face when Emily destroyed the crystal or the devastation when Katherine wasn't in the tomb... It makes me wonder what she was like, what she has done to be loved so fiercely for such a long time... if she was worth it. Ugh, I don't know… I guess somewhere inside I might feel a bit sorry for him and I hate myself for it," she shook her head to clear her thoughts from the image of the older Salvatore brother, when the crow flapped its wings, clicking its beak at her, the windowsill clear of crumbs.

"You're out of biscuit, aren't you?" She changed the subject with a chuckle in her voice and the crow made a croaking sound, which almost sounded relieved.

"Well, maybe there's some more." With a mischievous smile, Bonnie reached inside her pocket, then opened her hands, revealing more crumbs. "But you have to come and get it."

The crow clicked its beak in surprise, staring at her with an intense gaze as if gauging her intentions.

"Come on, I know you can do it," she said on a low voice, stilling her moves as not to frighten him. Carefully, he took a step forward, flapped its wings again, then hopped closer until he'd reached her small hands.

"That's it, almost there. Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you," Bonnie whispered calmingly and the bird blinked before hesitantly hopping onto her hands.

For a moment, neither of them moved, awaiting each other's reactions, then the crow lowered its little head and started to pick up the crumbs from her flattened palms.

Bonnie slowly let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding as she looked down on the crow that sat on her slender fingers. He was bigger than her hand and the sharp nails at the ends of his claws scratched the sensitive skin of her palms as he moved around to pick up the biscuit crumbs, clearly avoiding the cut underneath the band aid.

"Good boy," Bonnie whispered delightedly and smiled when the crow croaked indignantly at her words. Apparently he didn't like to be treated like a dog, but when the crumbs were gone, he stayed put and even sat down, allowing Bonnie to cup her hands a little around his body. A warm feeling engulfed her when his soft feathers brushed her palms.

Outside the overhang of the roof it started to rain. A melancholy look passed over her face. "You know, sometimes I feel so lonely. With my Grams gone I realize there is no one left but me and my dad." She closed her eyes and savored the feeling of the feathers against her skin. "And my friends… Elena has Stefan and even Caroline and Matt are together now…"

The crow moved in her hands and made a soft, gurgling sound, much like a cat's purring. It sounded very soothingly.

She couldn't help but smile and the crow blinked its beady eyes against her. "Thank you," she said quietly and on impulse she started to pull back her arms, retreating into her room. The crow, however, looked up in alarm and jumped out of her hands before she had reached the window frame.

Bonnie blinked in surprise at the crow's sudden actions and then nodded understandingly. "Yeah, you're right. You probably would have panicked and gotten injured inside."

The crow cocked its head and croaked softly as if contradicting her, but then the young witch saw the headlights of her father's car approach the house. "I think it's time for you to go now, birdie."

The bird cocked its head, seeming to nod and spread its wings. With a last look on the young witch he flew away into the dark woods as Bonnie with a smile averted herself from the window.

The following evenings the crow faithfully returned to the windowsill, always around the time when dusk would start to shroud the woods into darkness. And always he would find Bonnie sitting on the window seat, holding crumbs of enticing biscuit. Soon, the crow lost all of his hesitance toward her and immediately landed on the palms of her hands, but he never tried to go inside her room and Bonnie was careful to avoid drawing him toward the window. Instead, she was content with speaking to him on a hushed tone, that seemed to calm the crow. The bird's visits caused her mood to lift considerably, much to especially Elena's relief, though the few times Bonnie met with Stefan, he'd cast her a thoughtful, searching look. He never asked, though.

It was on a tranquil, somewhat warm summer evening when Bonnie's gaze caught the movement of two crows in flight high above the woods. They twisted and turned elegantly, calling out to each other, before they disappeared again. Something occurred to her.

She looked down on her crow, that sat contentedly in her hands and clicked its beak at her.

"My Grams once told me," she said quietly, "that all crows live in families of monogamously mated pairs. Just like that pair over there…"

The crow didn't seem to notice them, as he trained his beady black eyes on her.

Bonnie bowed forward slightly. "But, you've never brought along another crow. Don't you have a mate to go to?" She asked, a hint of worry in her voice as she watched the bird expectantly.

The crow opened his beak, only to shut it again. He flapped its wings and looked at her with a lost look in its beady eyes, before he suddenly took off.

An astonished Bonnie watched him go as he was swallowed by darkness.


	2. Two Evenings

**When A Dove Begins To Fly With Crows**

* * *

_Fourth Evening_

* * *

The next evening, Bonnie sat down on the window seat and waited for the crow to emerge from the forests across the front yard, but was unpleasantly surprised when he didn't come. And to her disappointment, he didn't appear the evening after that either.

As a feeling of dread started to fill her, Bonnie sat down at the window every night, fruitlessly waiting for the crow to show up. Every night, she crumbled a biscuit, put it on the windowsill and left it there, hoping that the crow would return at another moment, but he never did. She even tried to whistle, but to no avail.

Her spirits that had been lifted hesitantly once again lowered dramatically and it became painfully clear to Bonnie how important the crow's visits during twilight had become to her. Somehow, the bird's silent attention had made her feel as if he were listening to her and comforting her. With his disappearance another feeling of loss was added to the one she already had been burdened with and she cried herself to sleep at night again.

The pile of crumbs on the windowsill kept growing and decayed in a grimy mud mixed with rain, until one Sunday evening Bonnie threw open the window and with one furious movement wiped it all away, tears running down her cheeks as she closed her window. Enough was enough.

* * *

While the crow had abandoned her, Bonnie started to notice that Damon Salvatore suddenly had developed a habit of showing up unexpectedly and looking at her from the parking lot at school or from across the street when she entered the supermarket. The first time she had frozen to the ground, but he had made no attempt to approach her as he only watched her thoughtfully, his eyes intense in his otherwise impassive features. Most of the time she stared back at him, her face contorted in a scowl that didn't seem to impress him. The moment she would turn around, he disappeared.

He was there again, when she left school after a, thankfully, uneventful Monday. She saw him standing in a far corner of the parking lot, gaze fixed on the young witch and on their own accord, Bonnie's feet changed direction, marching right up to him.

Damon raised his eyebrow, but didn't move as Bonnie came to stand in front of him, a little breathlessly from her sudden action.

"Why won't you just leave me alone?" She growled accusingly, her gaze fierce in her chocolate eyes.

A melancholy expression for a moment ghosted over his sarcastic features before he smirked indulgently. "You wouldn't want that, little witch."

Bonnie opened her mouth for a heated retort, when she realized in shock that some unclear part of her actually acknowledged truth in his words.

"Oh, won't I?" She countered rather pointlessly but Damon simply looked at her, then with a swiftness indiscernible to the human eye, grabbed her hand and unfolded it, revealing the partly healed cut.

"Paper cut?" He asked innocently, while trailing a surprisingly soft finger along the ridges of the scab, surrounded by new, paler skin.

Bonnie was thunderstruck. All she could do was look down, her gaze fixed on the almost tender caress of the cut. Her intuition warned her that there was something to his question, as if he knew something she failed to see, but the sound of his voice pulled her from her thoughts and she quickly snatched back her hand.

"Splinter," she responded softly, thinking back of her crow in sadness.

"You might be more careful, little witch." He lifted his hand to her temple and his gaze thoughtfully trailed to the strand of black hair slipping through his fingers."Your magical blood is very sweet to certain creatures and we don't want Emily's descendent to be attacked again, now would we?"

His ice blue eyes momentarily filled with longing as his hand brushed the caramel skin of her neck when letting go of the soft curl. Then he stepped back, patiently, if not a little amusedly, to watch her struggle with a fierce anger flaring up.

Bonnie balled her fists and looked away. "Then  _you_  might get started with protecting me against yourself, Damon," she retorted through clenched teeth.

Damon smiled joylessly. "Believe me, I am."

His dark words made a shiver run down Bonnie's spine. They revealed to her the restrain he had to put himself under at this very moment as he looked down on her with an unreadable face. He'd tasted her blood, her sweet, magical blood... and he wanted more.

Bonnie involuntarily swallowed, before she bravely raised her eyes to meet his gaze and was taken aback by the intense, melancholy look with which he captured hers. Gone were his usual sarcasm and bravura and suddenly he reminded her strongly of his younger brother Stefan.

"How you're doing nowadays, little witch?" He determinedly changed the subject. An urgency she couldn't pinpoint laced his voice. Did he actually care?

Confusion replaced the feelings of anger and fright she'd felt before as she watched something flash in his eyes that took her a moment to recognize. Then her heart skipped a beat.

It was understanding. Actual, genuine understanding that made her eyes fill with tears. Her defences crumbled.

"Not too well," she replied softly and honestly, before she could hold back the words.

"I'm sorry to hear that." His resigned words sounded surprisingly sincere and Bonnie bowed her head, nodding wordlessly. Once again, her heart wrenched at the thought of her crow's disappearance.

As she took a ragged breath, Bonnie hugged her bag close to her chest. "I.. I'm sorry about Katherine," she mumbled, looking at a point near his shoulder.

For a moment there was only silence, then he said something she didn't expect. "I know."

Looking up in surprise, she saw the lost, empty expression in his eyes. She gasped. This expression she'd seen twice with him before, and had stirred her sympathy for him, even after what all he'd done to her. But another, more powerful feeling of recognition unexpectedly surged through her as she looked at him.

A recognition that made her take a step closer to the older Salvatore brother, driven by an urge that made her reach out to him with a far more overwhelming strength than just heartfelt sympathy. It was an inexplicable need to prevent him from… leaving her?

A fearful look for a moment appeared in Damon's ice blue eyes as he watched Bonnie's face suddenly going blank, before he was pulled in helplessly by the mysterious yet benevolent power that now engulfed him. He was mesmerized by her soft, brown eyes brilliantly shining up at him as his gaze lay bare his pain to the young witch before him.

"No," he then said huskily, responding to a question Bonnie couldn't remember, but felt she'd asked him once.

At hearing his voice, Bonnie blinked and was pulled from her concentration. She stepped back, immediately dissolving whatever power she had been maintaining between them.

Damon stumbled a little when she suddenly released him and shook his head to clear it. Then a smirk curled up the corners of his mouth.

"That was interesting," he commented, scrutinizing the young witch's face, before his gaze flickered toward a point behind her. He leaned in and lay a protective hand against her neck before he brought his mouth to her ear.

"It's time for you to go now, little witch. My little brother wants a word with you and I would advise you to pay close attention because…" he cast a glance over her shoulder, "I think it's important," he concluded in a sing-song voice, amusement lacing his words.

Despite herself, a grin appeared on Bonnie's features and she whispered, "Isn't that always the case with Stefan?"

Damon let out a dry chuckle. "You're absolutely right, little witch. Now off you go," he agreed and suddenly placed a light kiss on her cheek, before he disappeared the following moment.

Bonnie carefully turned around and slowly started to walk toward Stefan who stood next to her Prius, hands in his pockets as he studied her with a worried expression.

Feeling her headache already coming up, Bonnie sighed and walked up to him, pointedly rummaging through her backpack.

"Hey," Stefan said gently and from the corner of her eye she clearly saw several emotions passing over his face, ranging from worry to irritation to curiosity.

She struggled to put on a false smile. "Hey Stefan. Nice to see you." She ducked her head when the smile faltered, hoping that he wouldn't ask her to explain her little encounter with Damon he'd just witnessed, which she barely understood herself. The place where his lips had touched her cheek still tingled and her heart raced against her chest. "Look, I'm sorry but I have to go, so…"

"Did you already look into that book I gave you?"

Bonnie froze, keys in her hands, completely caught off guard. Book? What book? Then it slowly dawned to her. The book Elena had given to her. She had completely forgotten about it.

Stefan seemed to guess her train of thoughts. "You definitely should, Bonnie. It's very important."

She looked up and brown eyes met worried bluish grey ones and an involuntary sigh escaped her. "I will, Stefan. I promise."

Nodding once, he smiled his melancholy smile. "Good."

When she turned around, he had already disappeared.

* * *

At home Bonnie went straight upstairs, not bothering with taking an aspirin against her headache, and started to search through her textbooks. Finally she pulled an unfamiliar one from underneath her Economy book and sitting down her bed, she studied the black leather cover. A frown appeared between her delicate eyebrows as she ran a hand through her curly black hair. The book was inconspicuous with the unexciting word "notes" printed in golden letters in the corner on the right. Then her heart skipped a beat. She recognized the book. It was her grandmother's grimoire. In the grief following her death, it hadn't even occurred to her to look for it, but through Stefan and Elena it had found its way to her. Bonnie's hand flew toward her mouth as tears brimmed in her eyes.

With trembling fingers she opened the book and turned the tightly written pages. Her grandmother had been using the grimoire when teaching her, but not until now Bonnie could freely read the text full of spells, directions and thoughts on the life and loved ones of her Grams. The blood pounded in her ears as she leafed through the grimoire, pausing on a particular date in 1997, when she had been about five years old. Next to a direction for a spell, her Grams had scribbled a short remark.

_I think she has the gift._

Silent tears started to stream down Bonnie's cheeks as she let the rest of the pages run through her fingers, ending with the blank ones at the end of the book, silent witnesses of an abruptly ended life.

A sob broke through Bonnie's restraint and she closed her eyes, grabbing her painfully throbbing chest. When the moment of overwhelming grief had passed, Bonnie got a hold on herself and wanted to close the book, when her eye fell on the last of the written pages. It was dated on the day before she and her Grams would be opening the tomb and her eyes traveled to the first line.

 _My dearest Bonnie,_  it read.

Bonnie's breath caught. It was a letter. From Grams to her. A hot feeling started spread from her stomach through her body as she bowed over the text with eyes that were widened in shock.

She didn't see the crow that stared at her from the closed window, then flapped its wings and flew away.

* * *

_Fifth Evening_

* * *

Bonnie hadn't had much sleep and therefore had trouble making it through the next school day, but she had been more cheerful than she had been in weeks. The letter her Grams had written her, had encouraged her to continue her training by herself and, being the college professor she had been, Sheila had created a study route for her through her own grimoire with references to Emily's cookbook. It had felt as if, from the grave, Bonnie finally had received the sign she'd craved from her grandmother. A new clearance had been brought now into the pool of blackness drowning her, giving her a new direction as she determinedly started to practice the first spell Grams had pointed out for her to learn.

She even forgot about her strange encounter with Damon Salvatore.

In the afternoon she quickly left for the parking lot, telling an astonished Elena to thank Stefan from her and sped home.

Ignoring her ordinary homework she quickly grabbed a quilt from the house and sat down on the front lawn to repeat the spell she had learned previous night, then started on the next one. Healing broken objects and controlling her ability to create fire.

She was so engulfed in the grimoire, she didn't notice the soundless footsteps approaching her from the woods.

"How was school today?"

Bonnie's head jerked up when she heard the familiar voice and her eyes widened in shock. Damon Salvatore hovered over her as he looked down on her with a pleasant smile. She gasped.

"What are you doing here?" There was only astonishment in her voice, as she looked up at him in honest surprise. But, then the memory of their encounter the day before came rushing back. A deep blush spread across her cheeks when she remembered the kiss on her cheek, following the intimate moment they'd shared together.

"Surprised?" He amusedly countered her question, seeming to guess her thoughts and cocked his head as he studied her. "I thought I would pay my favorite little witch a visit."

This pulled Bonnie from her embarrassment and a displeased frown appeared on her features. She'd never liked being toyed with. "I think you'd better leave, Damon, or..."

He squatted on his haunches before her, his hand touching the ground beneath him as he looked her sharply in the eye. "Or what, Bonnie? What does the Witch of the West have in mind? Change me into a frog?"

She froze at his choice of words, as once again the inexplicable feeling stole over her that there was something he was hiding from her. Blinking furiously, she tried to hide her confusion as he patiently waited for her answer. "Well?"

Her eyes narrowed. "No, I won't do that," she said finally, "I can't have a frog trying to protect me."

An initial expression of pleasant surprise passed over his face before it was replaced by mock hurt and he raised his eyebrows at her. Then his gaze traveled toward the grimoire lying opened on the grass. He glanced at Bonnie from the corner of his eye.

"What have you been studying?" He changed the subject.

She followed his gaze and answered before she thought about it. Somehow it felt right to talk to him, as if his presence filled the void the crow had left upon his disappearance. "To control my ability to set things on fire every time I'm upset." She fidgeted with her hands. "It's difficult, though. There's not much at home that could make me upset, so it stays with learning the theory."

"Hmm," Damon nodded in agreement, then caught her gaze. "You know, I do have a knack for upsetting people. Maybe you could practice on me."

Bonnie's eyes widened. "What? No! I mean... If I would accidentally set you on fire, you might not recover."

But Damon merely shrugged and energetically took position in front of her.

"My problem, my loss," he responded lightly. "Come on. What are you waiting for? It's not like we're going to talk heavy things today, anyway."

His gaze lingered on the scar marring her hand, then he nodded encouragingly at her. After a moment of hesitation, Bonnie frowned and ducked for her book. "Fine," she grumbled.

"See? I've already upset you," Damon commented smilingly. "You make it too easy."

Bonnie rolled her eyes and scrambled up from the grass, cursing the way he scrutinized the inelegant movement. With an inaudible sigh, she shook her curls, not noticing his appreciative expression.

"Ok. So basically, you must try to get under my skin and I have to control my anger, my sadness, or whatever nasty emotion it is that I'm feeling."

Damon smiled a teasing half-smile. "Easy enough. You're just as righteous as your precious friend Elena, so whatever I'm about to say to you it will work like a red rag to a bull."

Bonnie's eyebrows slightly furrowed under his slightly challenging, ice blue stare.

"You've just compared me to a bull," she established evenly, trying to hide her irritation. She wasn't planning on letting him get to her so quickly. "It's not true, though. I'm not as righteous as you think. In the end we all only protect our own."

The lighthearted tease disappeared from his eyes as his gaze bore into hers. "This is Sheila speaking," he remarked and Bonnie nodded, remembering the moment in the tomb when her Grams had said something similar to Stefan. But, when Damon didn't react the way she'd expected him to she suddenly realized something.

"Stefan didn't tell you," she said hesitantly.

"Stefan tends to do that," he responded without averting his eyes. "What did he not tell me?"

"The door to the tomb was opened, but that didn't lift the seal to keep the vampires in. You would have been trapped inside the tomb. Stefan and Elena saved you that night." Her voice trailed off and she lowered her eyes, not being able to escape his penetrating gaze.

For a long, painful moment they silently stood across from each other, then Damon said, "So, this conversation has turned into heavy stuff talk, after all." He took a few steps closer and as Bonnie's breath caught, he lifted his hand and took a black curl between his fingers. "And the worst thing is... You're nowhere near being upset to the point where you want to set me on fire."

Bonnie blinked as she processed his unexpected words, then she caught his actually regretful gaze and a giggle involuntarily escaped her.

The tense atmosphere immediately relaxed and as the sound of her laughter died away, they merely stood there, watching each other with a slight smile gracing their lips. In the strangely content moment, Bonnie allowed herself to study the vampire standing before her. Her gaze searched the lines of his memorable features and the light blue, slightly almond eyes set in a pale face, framed by messy, dark hair. The characteristic, mocking expression had disappeared, leaving only a powerful attractiveness that made her heart involuntarily speed up for him.

As she looked at him, Bonnie felt that Damon once again had lowered his guard to her for her to see the tenderness, the melancholy, even some kind of... innocence hidden behind his calculating gaze, that had now softened considerably.

A blush colored her cheeks as she asked herself why - why would he lower his guard to her of all people? To the young witch his unfortunate fate had bound him to and the only one to become a real threat to him when her powers would increase?

She watched with bated breath as Damon, unaware of her confused thoughts, lifted his hand and caressed her hair, his long fingers lacing through the soft curls. Smiling slightly, he followed the strands slipping through his fingers. Subconsciously, Bonnie closed her eyes, savoring the feeling.

Suddenly, Damon's head snapped up and he took a step back as he cast a glance at the drive. "Your father is coming," he established. "I have to go."

Then, before Bonnie could register what happened and be alarmed by his casual remark, he had bowed forward and placed his lips on hers. Completely caught off guard, she froze under the tender touch as a corner in her frantic mind marvelled at the softness of his lips.

He brought his hand behind the back of her neck, deepening the kiss. As the blood started to thunder through her veins, she closed her eyes and parted her lips, granting him the access he sought. Automatically, she placed her hands on his chest as she tasted his mouth and took in his scent. Passion flared up between them and he drew her closer, making her arms reach up and wrap around his neck. A faint sound escaped him when her hands buried themselves in his hair.

But, as suddenly as the kiss had started, he let go of her again. The next moment, he appeared on the drive as his tongue licked the trickle of her blood from his lips. Bonnie brought her hand to her mouth, while staring at him. She hadn't even noticed the small sting in her bottom lip. His blackened eyes slowly turned ice blue again. Then he grinned. "A last try to upset my little witch."

Her eyes widened in horror and she flushed a deep crimson as she took a few steps forward, but all she was left with was an extinguishing fire on the front lawn.

In the woods a crow croaked amusedly.


	3. Three More Evenings

**When A Dove Begins To Fly With Crows**

* * *

_Sixth Evening_

* * *

Most of the following school day went by in a blur for Bonnie, but this time her absentmindedness wasn't caused by the numbing grief over her grandmother's death. Not noticing Elena's wary looks at her, she dreamily stared out the window, her chin resting on her hand as her thoughts whirled around the kiss that still tingled on her lips and the memory of a pair of arms holding her in a strong embrace.

She didn't know if she would want to experience this feeling again and if the disturbing feeling she felt could be called hope.

Bonnie counted the minutes on each of the classrooms' clocks, until finally she was able to leave school and be alone with her thoughts. With her summer dress fluttering around her she hastened herself to the parking lot and stepped into her car.

Then she pulled out of the parking lot and drove away, not noticing that she was being stared at from the woods by beady, black eyes.

When she came home, Bonnie went to her room where she reluctantly forced herself to start writing on that photosynthesis essay for Biology that really needed to be finished and so she didn't notice when the sun started to set and the shady, half-light of dusk veiled the world outside. At that moment a sudden, croaking "Caw!" coming from outside cut through her concentration.

She flinched and spun around, her eyes widening in shock. There, outside on the windowsill, sat a familiar looking crow, watching her with beady black eyes.

Immediately, Bonnie rushed toward the window and threw it open. The crow hopped up and flapped its wings, but didn't fly away.

"Where have you been?!"

Blinking its eyes, the black bird backed off a bit at Bonnie's positively livid expression. "Don't you know how long I've waited for you to come back and you didn't! I thought I had done something wrong… At one point I even thought you were… dead." She choked the last word. It actually had been the ending of a particularly horrible nightmare, before she woke up covered in sweat, when she'd seen the inanimate body of a crow lying underneath the staircase of an old, stately house.

Staring at her, the crow croaked softly at her words. It almost sounded like an apology.

Carefully, he hipped closer and cocked his little head.

Bonnie looked down on the small creature and slowly she felt her features relax under his loveable appearance as the furious expression left her gaze. With a shaky smile she shook her head and a moment later, she sat down on the window seat with a crumbled biscuit in her hands. "Here, you don't deserve it, but you're the only one who eats them anyway."

She lowered her hands toward the windowsill and the crow immediately hopped into her palms, his nervousness gone.

Bonnie allowed herself a small smile at the sight and leaned her head against the window frame, looking at a point in the distance. "You know, I really missed you. You've been the only one I could talk to about... well, everything. And since you left, a lot of strange things have happened. Do you remember when I told you about Damon Salvatore?"

She looked down on the black bird in her hands and for a moment it seemed as if the bird stopped picking up crumbs.

"I think you do. Apart from my Grams he's been the person I talked about the most," she said softly. "And from the moment you disappeared, I keep bumping into him. At first he just showed up and looked like he wanted to talk to me. He never did though, until that day on the parking lot at school when I sort of... confronted him and something... happened."

Bonnie lowered her gaze, insecurity flashing over her face. "It seemed like there was some kind of connection formed between him and me, in which I could see all of his loneliness displayed for me and without even wanting it, I sort of reached out."

She didn't notice that the crow had now forgotten about the crumbs and looked up at her with an intense gaze. "I've never really thought about it before, but he protected Emily's entire lineage of witches. Including me. He still wants to protect me, even after Emily's betrayal. And it makes me wonder: what does he know about Emily and the agreement they had? What has he done to keep me safe? And where does that leave us? Have I ever met him, even before Elena met Stefan?"

The crow clicked its beak and cocked its head.

"And yesterday, he appeared again, when I was studying witching lessons in the front yard."

A delicate blush graced her cheeks and she suddenly looked away shyly. "He offered to help me with my witching lessons. He… kissed me." The last words she whispered as she lowered her gaze. The bird didn't move, he only watched her while she talked. His intense gaze somehow compelled her to confess softly, "It felt nice. In fact, it was the best kiss I have ever had, but I also don't understand why. Why does he keep showing up? What does he want with me? Doe he want to use me again? But somehow doesn't feel that way. It almost feels like... he wants to be with me, in spite of Elena. That doesn't make any sense though. Why me? Is it my blood? I know that he longs for my blood..." Her expression momentarily darkened, as if the possibility regretted her.

Then she shook off the bitter thought and a mock smile appeared on her lips. "I think that my powers spice it up a bit."

The croaks the crow let out now definitely sounded like human laughter and Bonnie's smile widened to a grin.

For a moment, she was silent as she absentmindedly cupped her hands round the bird. Shivers of pleasure went through its little body at her careful touch.

She sighed. "Is it possible to loathe and even hate somebody, while at the same time you feel a fluttering in your heart the moment that he lowers his guard for you - the only witch in town, the one person he's bound to protect…"

The bird in her hands had become completely still as her voice trailed away, his black gaze fixed on the young witch's lovely features. He opened his beak and croaked softly. Immediately, she looked down on her pet bird, one of her curls falling onto his equally dark feathers and she chuckled softly, brushing off her discomfort. "A nice pair we are. The witch and her crow. The only thing we'll be needing now is a black cat."

The crow cocked its head and called indignantly, causing Bonnie to grin. "I already thought so. But it was worth a try."

Ruffling his feathers, the crow settled down on her palms and looked up at her contently. For a few peaceful moments they sat there in silence, as a full moon rose in the east. Then Bonnie looked down and slowly withdrew one of her hands, lifting it up.

The crow had noticed her movement and nervously his beady eyes followed her hand hovering over him.

"Hush," Bonnie whispered calmingly. "Don't worry. I only want to touch you."

Gingerly, her fingers brushed his black feathers and when the crow didn't back away, they added some more pressure to her caresses of his small, lithe body, trailing down the little head and his back.

The crow, which had been sitting in her palms motionlessly until then, started to relax and pulled in its neck, basking in the witch's caresses.

Bonnie withdrew her hand when a pair of headlights slowly approached the house. Opening his almost closed little eyes, the crow slightly flapped his wings in her hand, in silent protest.

"It's time," she whispered regretfully, "but there's always tomorrow evening."

The crow hopped from her hands and onto the windowsill, ruffling his feathers. Then he suddenly flew up and landed on her shoulder. Bonnie stiffened in shock upon feeling the sharp claws grabbing a hold on her soft skin for stability and she gasped when he brushed his smooth beak against her earlobe, giving it an affectionate nibble.

Then he took off and disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

_Seventh Evening_

* * *

The following evenings the crow landed on the windowsill like before as Bonnie finished her studying and went to sit by the open window. He loved to nestle in her cupped hands and enjoy the feeling of her fingers caressing him. Sometimes though, he went to sit upon her shoulder as she leaned against the window frame and he made that alluring, purring sound whenever she lifted her hand to stroke his smooth, bluish black feathers.

Dusk once again had become the witch's favorite time of day.

* * *

It hadn't gone by unnoticed by Elena that Bonnie seemed to finally be recovering from the deep depression after her grandmother's death. The numbness had retreated, making way for the real, lively Bonnie to return. Elena felt grateful that Sheila's grimoire had such a positive effect on her granddaughter and often found herself astonished at the spells the young witch had learned. Her powers were growing rapidly.

The only thing that worried her, was the fact that lately a black crow was often seen in Bonnie's vicinity. Elena had noticed the bird watching her on several occasions, only to fly away when she or Stefan inconspicuously shooed him, the last often with a hard stare. Her friend didn't seem to notice the black bird following her though, so Elena kept quiet about it as to not burden her.

The next Wednesday however, Elena had said goodbye to Bonnie and walked toward her SUV, when she saw the crow openly perched on the roof of Bonnie's Prius. Her eyes widened and her gaze flashed toward Bonnie, whom, to her dismay, had seen the bird as well and let out a surprised gasp. Elena waited for Bonnie to shoo the crow, but to her utter astonishment, her friend lifted her hand and let the crow hop onto it, smiling as she even petted the bird.

For a moment, Elena wondered in bewilderment if Bonnie knew, as she watched _Damon_ cock his head and croak softly at the witch. She took a few steps forward, when _Damon_ saw her and with a slight ruffling of his feathers took off.

"You know, with you being a witch and all, I thought you'd be more careful around crows."

Bonnie turned around in surprise at hearing Elena's voice behind her. The initial joy of suddenly seeing her crow waiting for her on her car, had changed into disappointed when he unexpectedly flew away and now she met with a gaze she could only describe as disapproval. She didn't like it.

Bonnie frowned. "Were you watching me?"

"That's not the point, Bonnie," Elena replied, narrowing her eyes. "It seems that you're quite familiar with that crow and I strongly advise you to keep your distance from him."

Bonnie's eyes widened in disbelief. "You did not just tell me to stay away from a _bird_. You talk about it as if it's a person."

Elena turned a little red under her apparent sarcasm. "Look, I'm only saying this for your own good. I don't want you to get hurt even more after what happened..." To her surprise her voice sounded insincere to her own ears.

A pained expression for a moment passed over Bonnie's features, then she shook her head. "All this isn't making any sense to me, but to me it sounds awfully like you are jealous, Elena. Jealous of the attention a crow is giving me."

The color on Elena's cheeks brightened. "Oh, you think I am? Well, maybe you should know that..."

Her words were cut off, when her gaze crossed Stefan who had suddenly showed up next to her SUV and was staring at her with an intense expression on his face. Her eyes widened.

"I have to go," she said hastily and before Bonnie could comprehend her strange behavior, Elena had already turned around and headed for her own car.

* * *

That evening Bonnie sat down on the window seat after having finished her homework for both school and witching lessons and enjoyed the warm summer breeze caressing her skin, while the scent of the roses underneath her window filled the air. Her thoughts drifted back to the awkward conversation about the crow she'd had with Elena this afternoon. She'd never seen Elena acting this... strange. And the things she had said seemed utter nonsense. However, her words somehow had stirred a feeling of unrest in Bonnie, as if her friend had appealed to instincts she'd buried deep inside when she grew more and more attached to her crow. Her crow...

A soft croak pulled her from her thoughts and Bonnie looked down to see the crow sitting next to her hand, his head cocked as he ruffled his feathers.

"Oh," she sighed. "Birdie." But instead of cupping her hands for him to hop onto, she stayed still and merely stared at the bird on the windowsill.

He was a crow like every other crow, a bird of medium size, with gleaming black feathers and intelligent, beady eyes. She'd grown to love this bird and every evening when he alighted on the windowsill and would hop into her hands, she would like to think that he liked being with her, liked to be petted by her, for he had even come back when she'd run out of biscuits.

The crow seemed surprised by her withdrawn reaction, because he suddenly flew up and landed on her knee. This was as close to the window as he'd ever been. He croaked indignantly as what seemed to be a questioning gaze appeared in his black eyes.

But Bonnie simply looked back, then asked, "What is it about you I should be afraid of? Why did Elena wanted to warn me about you?"

The crow stilled, probably from the serious tone in her voice. He blinked.

For a long moment, Bonnie silently studied him, imagining that the bird was staring back at her with a reproachful gaze in his gleaming little eyes. Finally, she sighed and slowly reached out. With her index-finger she stroked his little head, eliciting a purring sound from the bird. A small smile lit up her tense features.

"I don't want to stay away from you," she whispered, as her thumb stroked his soft feathers. She shifted so she would cup her hands for him to jump into, which the bird immediately did. "You've helped me through the loss of my Grams, you're there when I need someone to talk to and it always seem like you actually... understand."

The crow cocked its head as if nodding and with a bit more decisiveness Bonnie added, "I won't let you be taken away from me. You're _my_ crow."

"Caw!"

With a ruffling of its feathers, the crow called indignantly and Bonnie smiled as he cocked his little head. "I'll just pretend that you agree with me, Birdie."

The crow simply clicked its beak and peacefully nestled into her hands, as Bonnie relaxed against the windowsill, thoughtfully looking into the general direction of her grandmother's old house.

She hadn't been lying. The bird had helped build up the courage to face the world and to face life again and now that he was here to stay, she felt that she was finally ready to take the last step in the healing process.

"I've decided to visit Grams' house tomorrow after school," she said quietly and the crow looked up with a surprised gaze in his beady eyes. "I feel I'm ready now... thanks to you, Birdie."

The crow cocked its head and almost contently croaked at her words.

For a moment, Bonnie remained silent as she absentmindedly stroked the bird's feathers, enjoying the shivers of pleasure that coursed through his little body, as she watched the last rays of the sun disappearing behind the dense wood that loomed behind the front yard. Darkness had fallen over Mystic Falls.

The crow started to move in her hands and she knew that was almost time. The regretful moment for her bird to disappear into the woods. "It's almost time for you to go now, Birdie."

She cast a last glance on the dark trees across from the house. "I just wish..."

Her voice trailed away hesitantly as a blush colored her cheeks, but the crow looked up at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue.

Then Bonnie confessed quietly, "I just wish I was a crow and I could follow you wherever you're going when you leave at night..."

With a surprised sound the crow clicked his beak and completely stilled his movements at her longing words.

"Bonnie? Who're you talking to?" A voice came from the other side of her bedroom door. Bonnie's head snapped up. It was her father. She hadn't even noticed him coming home. And neither had the crow apparently.

"Ehm, just some bird, dad. He comes here sometimes for some biscuit," she replied hastily, hoping that her father wouldn't decide to come in. But after a moment of silence, her father replied absentmindedly, "Oh, ok, honey. Just don't let him soil the entire windowsill."

Bonnie's eyes widened and a nervous giggle escaped her as the crow flapped its wings in silent protest, utterly affronted.

"I'm sorry," the young witch mouthed at him as she lowered her hands to let him hop onto the windowsill.

The crow flapped its wings, understanding that it needed to be silent and clicked its beak as Bonnie made to go inside her room, a spot of black against her white windowsill, seemingly equally reluctant to leave. On an impulse, she bowed forward and brushed her lips against his little head in the smallest of caresses, making the bird go completely rigid as he stared at her with an unreadable look in his beady eyes. Then he suddenly took off and disappeared around the house.

"See you tomorrow, Birdie," she whispered regretfully and closed the window.

* * *

_Eight_ _h Evening_

* * *

Apparently, the crow had understood that he would bring Bonnie into trouble if he approached her in public, so he refrained from doing so while she was at school and Bonnie thought it best to let Elena believe that she'd followed her advice. Instead, she and Elena talked about the spells she'd learned in the past few days. Witching lessons were far more interesting than math.

That afternoon Bonnie didn't go straight home, but true to her resolution, she let her hands turn the wheel and for the first time in what felt forever, follow the familiar road to her Grams' old home. Her heart hammered in her chest.

When the salmon colored house came into view, Bonnie subconsciously slowed down, her eyes filling with tears when she parked.

As the blood pounded in her ears, she gingerly got out of the car and turned toward the front door. She took a deep, shaking breath to calm herself, then tightened her grip around the keys and with a determined face, walked up the front porch.

Bonnie didn't know how long she had been inside, wandering through the empty, tastefully furnished rooms, here and there pulling open drawers and running her hands across the polished wooden side tables and heavy curtains. The spirit of her Grams was still very much present in her home, as if she could appear from the dining room every moment.

But it didn't hurt Bonnie anymore. The few tears she'd shed when she found herself in the vestibule had quickly dried and after she'd gotten over her hesitation, she deeply enjoyed being in her grandmother's house and a warm feeling glowed inside of her.

When the sun turned away from the windows in the living room, Bonnie stepped out of the house and allowed herself to sit down for a moment on the front porch steps, like she had done so often when she was a child.

She leaned her head against the smooth white pillar and her eyes wandered over the surroundings, as her sandaled foot absentmindedly drew circles in a heap of sand. It was the last thing she saw before she sunk away in an exhausted but peaceful sleep.

* * *

He shouldn't be here. He really shouldn't. But when she'd told him that she would be here the entire afternoon, he couldn't resist the urge to go see her. Maybe it was curiosity, maybe it was worry, it could even be the unnerving and quickly growing feeling of longing for her, but he didn't really mind. All of his doubts were forgotten as she stepped from the woodland shade and spotted her small frame resting against the pillar on her grandmother's front porch. She appeared to be asleep.

With vampire speed he rushed up to her and stopped right before her to look down on her as conflicted feelings passed over his face.

Not too long ago, Damon had been standing in another girl's bedroom, watching her sleep in his endless loneliness, but as the source of his love for the image of her, his addiction, had been proven false, he couldn't remember ever having felt this moved by the sight of a young woman sleeping. Contrarily to Elena, Bonnie wasn't the incarnation of her early nineteenth century ancestor, though Emily's strong, yet delicate features had survived through the generations and showed in her young descendant's charming face.

Emily had been the only person whom had always been able to unnerve him, whom he had actually feared and if it hadn't been for Katherine, he would have stayed away from her as far as possible. But in their need to save their loved ones, they had surprisingly found each other, though it had condemned him to watch over her offspring into eternity.

Damon knelt down and stretched out his hand to gently trail his finger along Bonnie's cheek and exposed neckline. To his surprise, she didn't wake up.

Bonnie Bennett. The last witch of Emily's line and the least experienced one at that too. True to his word, he had protected her like the other witches before her and Emily's betrayal hadn't made him rethink his side of the bargain. Unknowingly, even unbeknownst to himself either, she'd taken a special place in his heart which he thought had been broken after Katherine's betrayal. He wondered if Emily had ever foreseen for that to happen, or would approve of him caressing her descendant like a lover.

His expression softened as he gently brushed away a curl and his gaze trailed toward Bonnie's neck, seeing the vein that barely visibly pulsed underneath her caramel skin. He pulled back his hand.

A network of dark veins appeared around his suddenly blackening eyes as he deeply inhaled. His nostrils were filled with the sweet scent of Emily's powerful lineage that ran through Bonnie's veins. The memory of her taste had stayed with him ever since he'd sunken his teeth into her and had left him hungering for more. When he had kissed her on the front lawn he'd been able to contain himself, but on her grandmother's front porch, her intoxicating scent mixing with the scent of the roses surrounding the house, he fought a lost fight.

Slowly but determinedly he leaned in, his face only inches from hers as the crease between her eyebrows deepened. His nose then touched her soft cheek and drew a line toward her earlobe until his lips hovered above her exposed neck. He closed his eyes as he lightly grazed her incredibly soft skin and the tip of his tongue peeked through his slightly parted lips, tracing the place where the vampire was going to attack.

Then he suddenly sighed and drew back with supernatural speed, catching her hand before it was going to grab his arm.

She looked at him with wide eyes. For a moment, they were rooted to their spots, watching each other as Damon's eyes returned to normal.

"What made you stop?" The witch whispered, breaking the silence.

Damon shook his head and loosened his grip on Bonnie's arm.

"You." His conflicted tone betrayed the feelings of relief and regret that coursed through him as he looked down on her.

Bonnie processed this, then lifted her hand to her neck, hiding it from view. Her gaze met his. "Next time I will set you on fire," she stated simply, the danger behind her threatening announcement crystal clear without the use of rightful anger. Damon blinked and narrowed his eyes, before he sat down next to her, his arms loosely resting on his knees.

Bonnie shifted somewhat closer to her pillar. "What are you doing here?"

A bitter expression momentarily flashed through Damon's ice blue eyes. He looked at her from the corner of his eye, a serious yet wary expression in his ice blue eyes. "Next question please."

Bonnie carefully let go of her neck and rested her hands in her lap. The vampire next to her noticed how the soft yellow of the thin cotton dress complimented her skin. Imperceptibly to Bonnie, his eyes softened.

"How did you know I was here?" She finally asked. "I have told nobody."

Damon merely cocked his head. "I have my sources," he replied enigmatically, not explaining himself and Bonnie's eyes traveled over his sharp profile as he stared into the distance a little absentmindedly. Her gaze came to rest upon his lips which just now had grazed her neck but only yesterday had been pressed against hers, parting for her to taste their softness... A feeling she very much wanted to experience again. Her eyes widened at the direction her thoughts had taken and quickly she averted her gaze, focusing on the straps of her sandals instead.

"That was a brave thing to do, little witch."

Bonnie blinked at his unexpected remark. "What?"

"The visit." With a little jerk of his head he motioned to the house behind them. "How do you feel?"

"Oh, I..." She looked at the circles in the sand underneath her feet. How did she feel? Relieved, she guessed, that she had finally come to peace with her grandmother's passing. "Better than I had expected," she then answered honestly. "I only feel gladness for being back here where my Grams lived. The place still breathes her."

"Hmm," Damon cast a look over his shoulder and he frowned slightly as if he felt it too, the echoes of Sheila's presence here. It made him feel uncomfortable.

The young witch at his side noticed his reaction and it reminded her of the connection between the vampire and her family. "So," she spoke up quietly, the sound of her voice breaking the silence, "you protected every witch in Emily's line."

Damon grimaced slightly. "Yep, each and every one of them," he replied evenly, with a hint of self-mockery.

"Then you must really hate us by now," Bonnie stated matter-of-factly as only a hint of regret laced her voice.

At this Damon glanced at her from the corner of his eye, but then shook his head dismissively and a vague smile started to play around his lips. "Do you want me to?"

Bonnie sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. "I didn't say that," she said quietly. "... But I guess the correct answer would be - I don't care if you do."

Damon nodded. "You're a quick learner, little witch."

A thoughtful silence settled between the vampire and the witch sitting on the front porch, each divulged in their own thoughts, as they sometimes inconspicuously cast a glance at the other. The wind rustled through the high trees, playing with Bonnie's curls and Damon's sharp gaze followed her elegant movement as she pulled back the loose strands falling into her face. A crow called in the woods and she subconsciously straightened somewhat. The older Salvatore brother smiled.

"Do you like crows?"

A look of confusion passed over Bonnie's face and she blinked as she turned to face him. "What?"

Damon nodded toward the woods, where another crow responded to the first one. "Crows. I saw you reacting to their call. Do you like them?"

To her horror, Bonnie felt a deep blush creep to her cheeks. She didn't feel like telling him about her pet crow. Damon Salvatore for sure would be the one not to understand it.

She forced herself to shrug as she set an indifferent face. "Oh, not in particular. There's only one crow who sometimes visits my home and I give him some biscuits."

Damon frowned as a disbelieving expression flashed over his features, then he slightly narrowed his eyes and his gaze bore into hers. Bonnie couldn't move. "Didn't your grandmother tell you to be careful around crows?"

The ominous words lingered between them as Bonnie opened her mouth, then closed it again, captivated by his gaze.

"He makes me feel better," she then whispered. "Ever since my Grams' passing I was hurting so much. But the crow's visits somehow comforted me and I made me find the will to go on."

Damon's features hadn't changed while listening to her words, but something flickered in his eyes as her voice trailed away.

"That's quite an accomplishment for a bird," he finally said, but his voice held no trace of mockery. He even sounded a little bit jealous, Bonnie realized in astonishment until Damon turned his head to look at her, his indulgent smile distracting her.

"So, what do you talk about when he visits?" For some reason his gaze wandered toward her delicate, caramel hands and a longing expression momentarily passed over his face.

"I won't tell you that," Bonnie said, offended, thinking about all those times she'd mused about Damon himself and the confusing way she felt about him.

The vampire looked at her with an attentive gaze as his voice took on a velvety tone. "Really? You do know that you might only make me more curious about what my little witch talks about with the animals in the woods..."

Perhaps it had been his intention to persuade her into talking or to mock her, but his attempt failed as an amused smile formed on Bonnie's lips. "Well, your little witch is not planning on telling you, so you have to learn to live with it."

He grimaced at her choice of words. "Charming," he commented and Bonnie cast him a sweetly smile.

"So, how are things going with the witching lessons?"

Bonnie cocked her head and narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing his curious but rather innocent expression. Her heart sped up. She hated it when he looked at her that way. It made her heart leap up. "You seem pretty interested in them," she stated.

He smirked before the innocent look returned. "It's my duty to protect Emily's line of witches." His gaze held hers for a moment, then he continued on a softer tone, "... and if that means helping her last descendant to not give up on her magic..."

His voice trailed away and Bonnie blinked as she let the words sink in, then her eyes widened in realization. "The grimoire. Elena said it was Stefan who..."

"A little white lie. You wouldn't have accepted my help so easily."

Then his head suddenly snapped up. In the west the sun started to set. "It's time for me to go now, little witch." He quickly rose, then slightly leaned in to trail a finger along her caramel cheek.

"So soft," he whispered, before casting her one of his characteristic smirks.

On a human pace he strode toward the woods when the sound of Bonnie's voice made him stop and turn.

"Why do you keep showing up?" She had risen too and her hand lay on the wooden pillar as she watched him standing in the front yard, her heart racing in her chest.

For a moment, he didn't answer as he studied her and a melancholy expression passed over his face.

"Not everyone has a crow to turn to, little witch."

And with that he disappeared between the trees.

* * *

Half an hour later, Bonnie parked her car before her house and quickly went upstairs. She opened her window and leaned outside, thinking about the last words Damon had said before he had disappeared in the woods. His appearance at her grandmother's house had caught her completely off guard, but somehow it hadn't bothered her that he had been sitting there next to her on her grandmother's front porch. On the contrary, she couldn't deny the excited jolt of her heart she'd felt at seeing him, nor could she forget the fluttering of her heart when she discovered it had been him who had returned her grandmother's grimoire to her. A sigh escaped her as she massaged her temples while confusion about Damon's helpful behavior toward her absorbed her thoughts.

Finally, Bonnie turned away from the window and, ignoring her homework, she jumped onto her bed to start on that other, less ordinary homework. She hoped that she would be able to work up the concentration to do so.

Opening her grandmother's grimoire, she followed the instruction and leafed to the page Sheila's instructions sent her to. A spell for summoning animals.

Bonnie's eyes started to gleam in excitement as she read the words. This could get interesting. Her curls falling over her forehead, she started to read the directions. The spell was a difficult one to learn, so the grimoire instructed her to start with the focus on an animal she had a strong connection with.

Bonnie's slender finger rested on the elegantly written words as the young witch suddenly regretted not having all kinds of pets wandering around the house, though she had never really cared for them.

As Bonnie frowned in thought a gush of wind came in through the open window, making the net curtains billow. She shivered as she sat up, noticing the false light preceding twilight. A smile broke through her serious features.

Closing her eyes, Bonnie focused on the crow.

* * *

Stefan looked up from his book in shock, when he heard a startled cry and a loud thud, followed by a pained groan and muffled curses coming from the bathroom, where Damon had just shut off the water.

Lately, it had become a daily routine for his older brother to fresh himself up at sunset and disappear for a couple of hours, always in his crow form. He didn't bother to hide his actions for Stefan, who had some suspicions on where he went, but since he'd also noticed that Damon seemed to be recovering from the disaster at the tomb and nothing bad happened, he let things be.

In the blink of an eye, Stefan had appeared upstairs and opened the bathroom door. His eyes widened. Sprawled on the bathroom floor was his brother. Damon was clenching the bathtub as an invisible force violently tugged on his body.

Stefan raised his eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

Damon glared at him. "How would I know? One moment I'm taking a shower, the next moment I'm knocked out of the bathtub and smashed against the door."

A small smirk curled up Stefan's mouth as he leaned against the doorframe and watched his brother fight a lost fight to stay inside of the bathroom. Another pull peeled loose his fingers and with a painful bang against the doorpost Damon flew through the doorway, past his brother and through the hall. His body then fell down the banister and inevitably drew toward the front door. Stefan's smirk broadened as he heard Damon's distressed voice call, "Wipe that smirk from your face and at least throw me a towel!"

Only obeying the second command, Stefan flashed down the stairs and threw his brother the towel to cover himself.

"Looks like witchcraft to me. Made one angry with you again?" He commented amusedly, before he lazily strolled toward the front door as the other Salvatore struggled to put on the towel.

Damon's eyes widened. "You wouldn't…"

"Do what…?" Stefan asked innocently and opened the door wide. Then he watched his older brother disappear outside with a startled cry.

* * *

As Damon helplessly rushed through the darkening sky, Stefan's words and the direction he moved into made him widen his eyes in realization. _Shit._

He tried to change into his crow form, but the foreign pull on his body interfered with his own powers and he could only watch as the familiar house inescapably drew near.

Bonnie's eyes shot open, her concentration breaking immediately when she heard a loud bang and a series of colorful curses coming from outside her window. Her head snapped into the direction of the window seat and she watched in horror as Damon Salvatore scrambled to stay on the small windowsill. He helplessly tried to grab a hold onto something, wearing... nothing but a towel.

"What are you doing here?" She shrieked in panic.

"You tell me." Damon glared at her as he tried to stabilize himself against the wall.

"I didn't call you! I was summoning…" Bonnie's eyes widened in shock.

"Yes…?" _Maybe now was a good time to change into his crow form._

"Oh God," Bonnie whispered as she stepped back, her hand before her mouth as she looked about to faint. _Ok, maybe not._

"You know, a little help here would be appreciated, little witch." Damon tried to smile charmingly, but in his uncomfortable position it worked out as a grimace.

"I can't let you in," she responded automatically and his face fell. "You summoned me!"

"I didn't!" Bonnie seemed genuinely panicked now and started to pace around in her room as she looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"Oh! And what would you have done when the crow would have slammed against the protection or even the wall next to your window? Do you honestly think he would've survived that?" Damon winced at the thought.

"I… I…" she looked up. "I hadn't really thought about that," she replied lamely. "I didn't know the power had such speed…"

"Well, now you do," Damon groaned and pushed himself against the wall. "So, can I come in now?"

"Can't you just… let yourself fall onto the lawn or something? I mean, you can't actually die." Bonnie came closer hesitantly, a begging look in her eyes, but Damon suddenly looked over his shoulder. Despite his awkward situation, he was distracted by something. When he turned back his head, his eyebrows were raised mockingly.

"And jump right before your father's car, naked?"

Bonnie gasped and rushed to the window, seeing the headlights of her father's car heading for the house. _Oh no, he had come home early!_

Her panicked look crossed Damon's and he cocked his head, smirking.

"Oh, for the love of… Come in!"

_In whatever_ _impossible way, Grams is gonna kill me._

* * *

"You can turn around now, little witch." Damon's mocking voice pulled her from the frantic thoughts whirling around in her head. "It's safe."

Hesitantly, she did as he said, immensely relieved to see his lean body decently covered by the jeans and the old, striped sweater she'd snatched from her father's closet before he'd entered the house. Thank God, it was his routine to go to the kitchen first.

She let her gaze travel over Damon's appearance. The conventional clothes, so different from his dark designer outfits, made him look strangely innocent. As her eyes lingered on the vampire standing in the middle of her room, hands lazily in his pockets, she tried to forget the image of his pale, sculptured body as he elegantly climbed through her window and straightened to his full length. She failed terribly.

"Like what you see?"

Bonnie's eyes widened in shock and to her horror she felt the blood rush to her cheeks as he looked at her with an indulgent half-smile. His hair, still moist from the shower he'd been taking, was falling playfully over his forehead.

"What?! No! I..." she immediately tore her gaze from him and continued her agitated pacing until Damon suddenly reached out, willing her to turn toward the vampire that blocked her view on the window.

For a long, painful moment they remained quiet, then Bonnie balled her fists and clenched her teeth. "So, you can change into a crow." It wasn't a question.

She cast a quick gaze at him, giving him a momentarily insight into the incredible hurt in her eyes. "You led me on. I told you... everything. You horrible, evil..." Her voice was low from anger and grief choked her words. The tears burned behind her eyes. She felt utterly betrayed. With a face contorted in fury she heaved her hand as if to slap him only for it to fall powerlessly alongside her body.

"Why?" She whispered brokenly. "Why does it always have to be me?"

Damon looked down on the devastated girl - his little witch as mixed feelings passed over his face. He was touched by her words. And she was right. Why did it always had to be her who had to suffer the consequences of his actions? Was it because she was Emily's descendant he couldn't leave her be?

Though she would never believe him now, the moment he'd landed on her windowsill for the first time, he'd really wanted to support her, to help her over her loss of her grandmother. At the same time he'd felt drawn to her because of the recognition he'd felt when seeing the emptiness in her eyes. If he were honest with himself, the scent of her blood had pulled him toward her, too.

He knew she would never have allowed him in her proximity, so he'd resolved to approach her in his crow form. It had worked. After a hesitant beginning, she'd opened up to him in a way which had surprised him, but which had also become balsam to his own, scarred soul. She had been blissfully ignorant of who he was and slowly he'd come to know this descendant of Emily's he'd been watching over ever since she was born - the little witch as he'd began to call her. He noticed that, although she seemed to suppress it in her teenage need to be normal, she had a wisdom that went beyond her years. A subconscious knowing that came with her dormant powers, which unnerved him but at the same time intrigued him to no extent.

During the long days of hanging around in the Salvatore Boarding House, he'd started to long for the moment when twilight set in and he would change into his crow form, before flying to the Bennetts' home. He couldn't believe how much he'd gotten attached to the little witch in such a short time. She had become a bright spot of light in the darkness following Katherine's betrayal. Even Stefan had noticed, but had refrained from asking.

He had been glad that she hadn't been able see the look of expectation on his face, eager for the moment when she would fold her hands around his feathered body and talk about the things that occupied her thoughts.

Surprisingly, he had taken a large part in that. She seemed horribly conflicted about his behavior. She hated him for his ruthlessness but at the same time she wasn't able to forget the moments when he'd been forced to lower his guard to her and had shown a glimpse of the hidden Damon, the human Damon.

Which was not a good thing. Either for her or for him.

As a witch she should be cursing the ground he walked on. But his true identity was safe behind the crow's black plumage and instead she showed him warmth and her blissful scent made him lower his guard even more each passing night. That was, until she unwittingly confronted him with the loss of Katherine. Hard. He had refrained from visiting the house during the evenings, but noticed that he couldn't bear to lose sight of her, after he'd already lost her loving embrace. Of course she'd noticed him popping up everywhere and he had received her glares with an impassive face as melancholy stung his cold heart at the memory of the moments when she would smile down on him. He'd actually felt glad when she finally had come up to him and broke through the impasse. And then it had happened. That moment in which he'd lost control of himself and was taken over completely by an alien force that freed him from the hurt his attachment to Katherine had brought him, until he'd belatedly responded to her question about the mate he missed. Only then he realized that she, descendant of the powerful witch posing as Katherine's hand maiden, actually might be worthy.

The next day he'd planned on returning to her window as a crow, but when he'd noticed her sitting on the front lawn, he'd decided on impulse not to land on the branch with view on her bedroom window, like he'd done before, but walk up to her in his human… well, vampire form. Suddenly, he had wanted her to get to know him, to smile up at the person he truly was. The memory of their kiss still burned on his lips. It had made him follow her to her grandmother's house the day afterwards.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking at the door with a troubled gaze. For once, he was at a loss for words, other than a sincere apology.

Bonnie froze. Here she was and in the moment of her greatest despair he… apologized. He actually apologized.

As a rule, Damon Salvatore didn't apologize to anyone, since apparently he didn't do regret either. But now she heard the words fall from his lips in a low tone and it felt sincere. She was suddenly reminded of the way the crow would softly croak, before he would nestle in her cupped hands and look up at her with its cocked head. Her breath hitched as she stared up at him and the pieces of the puzzle finally came together.

The black feathered animal she'd grown attached to had been revealed to be the one person of whom she'd rather see his back, but when she looked into Damon's ice blue eyes she recognized the proud but affectionate bird in him, watching her with an intent gaze.

Tears she had managed to bite back now freely started to flow down her cheeks and she bowed her head. "Was it real? Oh God, tell me that it was real," she choked with a raspy voice.

Damon looked down on Bonnie's bowed head, her face hidden by black curls.

"It is real," he said softly. "There's a reason the crow kept coming back, Bonnie."

Her breath hitched at his words. More than anything in the world she wanted to believe them but for obvious reasons she hesitated.

On impulse, Damon reached out and wrapped his arms around her. Bonnie froze when she suddenly found herself in his embrace but then she lifted her hands to his chest and her small hands grabbed a hold onto his sweater. Her fingers dug into the skin underneath as she seemed to struggle between the hurt demanding that she'd pull away and the longing to stay in his arms. The air around them began to tremble from the witch's fierce emotions.

As slight fear for her powers crept into his heart, Damon withstood the pain her surprisingly strong hands caused him and he knew that, though it would sadden him, he would let her go if she wanted to.

Bonnie then seemed to notice the force field building around them and took a deep, shaky breath to try and control herself. For a moment, they remained motionless, before Damon felt her magical hold on them loosen. Hesitantly, he put his hand on her head and laced his fingers through her smooth curls. In reaction, Bonnie rested her head against his chest.

"You piece of..." She whispered with muffled voice into his sweater.

Damon closed his eyes in regret, then drew back. With a speed imperceptible to the human eye he reappeared before the window, ready to leave.

"Wait."

The word had left her lips before Bonnie knew it and she took a step forward. "Is... is this goodbye, then?"

Damon turned back slightly and a contemplating look appeared on his face as he scrutinized her tense features that showed regret and resentment. "Only if you want to, little witch."

Bonnie's eyes widened and he knew he had reminded her of that strangely intimate moment on the parking lot. She watched him as he remained standing on his spot near the window. The vampire who had shared the same feelings of loss with her and in his crow form had helped her through the loss of her Grams. The vampire who now looked at her with a shimmer of hope in his eyes, wishing for his witch to accept his presence around her. And she knew it was too late to keep Damon Salvatore at a safe distance. She had already invited him in... and she didn't regret it.

A shaky but challenging smile broke through her tense expression. "I see you next evening then."

His features lit up in a barely imperceptible way and he took a few steps closer to reach out and trail his finger along her soft cheek. Then he pulled Bonnie in. Their faces merely inches separated, he admired the soft brown color of her eyes as she lost herself in the brilliant blue of his. He smiled.

"Thank you," Damon whispered, before he leaned in and once more savored the feeling of her lips on his. To his surprise, she immediately welcomed him, deepening the kiss as her arms slid around his waist and she pressed her body to his. He pulled her tightly against him and took in her sweet scent until the blood thirst got too much to bear. Drawing back he tenderly kissed her closing eyes.

"See you then," he whispered, his eyes softening ever so slightly as he gave her a last, light peck on the lips.

He stepped back and suddenly changed into the now so familiar black crow. Her brilliant gaze followed him as he circled around her, then momentarily sat down on her shoulder and gave her earlobe an affectionate nibble, before he disappeared into the woods.

Bonnie smiled as she watched him go - her pet crow, her protector, her vampire, her possible love, to return to his little witch as soon as possible, as the crow flies.

-THE END-


End file.
